There are an estimated 10,000 to 12,000 spinal cord injuries each year in the United States. Different spinal cord injuries leave the individual with varying degrees of mobility and fine motor skills with resulting ranges of ability to handle everyday tasks for themselves. A common thread can however be found across the broad spectrum of injuries, in that most spinal care patients desire to feel and act as “normal” as possible, and appreciate any tools and resources that make their lives easier and more enjoyable.
Traditionally caretakers of more severe spinal cord injury patients face a long grueling process each day with getting the patient dressed because of the constant turning and lifting required to get each piece of clothing under and around them. Once the patient is dressed, the patient is turned and lifted again to place a net under them in order to hook them up to a lifting machine that lifts them from their bed and moves them over to their chair. This dressing and lifting process is so time consuming, that by the time they are seated in their chair, they usually need to use the bathroom again.
This causes the process to have to be reversed, starting with lifting the patient out of the chair back onto the bed, undressing them and then straight catheterizing them.
While various garment configurations have been proposed for use by patients requiring access to their pelvic region, there remains a need for a convenient and useful garment to meet the needs of these patients.
In U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US 2014/0230130, Edwards discloses a garment with moveable and removable panels. The zippered panels may be placed to cover the front/crotch area of the pants and unzipped to provide access to the interiors of the garment. Edwards also discloses that the panels may be trapezoidal in shape or various other shapes as well, such that when the panel is unzipped and in the open configuration, the waistband defines the upper limits of the opening and the edges of the pants adjacent to the zippers define the two sides.
In U.S. Pat. No. 5,926,851, issued to Kovalik, a garment for use by the elderly, handicapped and infirmed is disclosed. The garment has a flap provided in the front torso portion to allow easy donning and removal of the garment. Kovalik also discloses that the flap extends from the waistband down to the crotch area of the garment and includes attachment means for securing the flap including Velcro strips along the length of the flap and buttons at the top to secure the flap to the waistband.
In U.S. Patent Application Publication No. US2013/0007939 Martinez discloses a set of clothing for use by handicapped children and adults that have been adapted to be fashionable and comfortable as well. Martinez discloses a pair of pants having a pair of zippers along the entire vertical length of the pants for providing relatively easy access to the patient's legs and side while making it relatively easy to put-on and take off the pants. Martinez also discloses that the pants are made for both men and women and can be configured as short pants or other suitable pants as well.
A number of other garments for allowing access to the pelvic area have been proposed. However, there continues to be a need for a practical garment for convenient use by patients requiring regular access to the pelvic area which addresses the various needs of the patients and solves the problems associated with conventional garments.